NintendoLogic

Punk going full Jordan.

To this day, people chant for CM Punk at WWE shows. Nobody chants for Roman Reigns at AEW events.

It should be remembered that TNT is vehemently opposed to surprise debuts for obvious reasons. After Sting made a surprise debut at Winter is Coming, they told AEW to never do that again. The diehards may know the score, but there are plenty of people who would likely tune in to see Punk who don't fall into that category. I'm sure there'll be some kind of official announcement even if it's only on Twitter.

His name comes up a lot in discussions of best technical wrestler, which for a lot of people is synonymous with best wrestler period.

Saying Dave never speaks well of Charlotte when he's been carrying water for her for years (remember when he insisted that adding her to Becky/Ronda made for a better story?) is almost as ludicrous as accusing him of being in the tank for AEW when he did a radio show with a guy who implied the company conspired to cover up a COVID death.

http://puroprogramtranslations.blogspot.com/2018/11/article-traces-to-nowhere-takeshi.html Here's a translation of that article. A very fascinating and sad story. In the comments, the guy who translated it said that he doesn't know where Morishima is now or what he's doing, but he does know that he's doing well.

All the credit in the world to Christian for being able to rein Omega in and produce an excellent match. It's obvious that as long as Omega is AEW champion, he won't be losing his other titles to anyone other than AEW-contracted talent, so I expect Andrade to beat him at Triplemania tonight. I guess I'm one of the few who has fond memories of Hayter's first AEW run. She struck me as a rich man's Bea Priestley, so I'm glad to see her back. I would have preferred for her to come in as a challenger to Britt rather than a lackey, though.

The latest Observer mentions that other than CMLL lifers like Atlantis and UG, the only thing keeping their top stars around is the New Japan connection, which both pays well and gives them greater international exposure. But with the roster increasingly depleted, New Japan might decide it's not worth being unable to use guys like Pentagon and Fenix because CMLL would veto it. If the New Japan/CMLL relationship weakens, more of the top guys will go independent and try to get more bookings in the US. The issue also reveals that WWE was in talks to buy CMLL a few years back. It doesn't give an asking price, but it says the deal fell apart when CMLL wanted the arenas they owned to be part of the deal and WWE didn't want to own so many older arenas. The truth is, those buildings are by far CMLL's most valuable asset. In fact, I'd go so far as to say they'd be nearly worthless without them, like WCW without a TV deal.

I was pleasantly surprised that they didn't have Britt heel on her hometown crowd. If it was WWE, they would have had her come out in a Ravens jersey and blow her nose with a Terrible Towel. Truth be told, I can't think of a compelling reason to not make her a full-fledged babyface, especially if she's going to be a long-term champion. Turning heels who become popular with fans by having them do the things that got them over to heels instead of babyfaces is like Pro Wrestling 101.

It seems to me that UG was completely in the right in that case. There's no justification for leadership of a union, even a toothless company union, belonging to a family by birthright.

They may look good by normal person standards, but this is Vince we're talking about. Recall that he was initially hesitant to sign Gail Kim because he couldn't fathom the idea of someone being attracted to an Asian woman. He relented after JR informed him that Asian porn was a thing.

Well...so much for Ogogo being the true babyface.

Quite a few dominoes have fallen today. First, CMLL announced that the Nueva Generacion Dinamita have left the company and the titles they held (trios held by NGD and middleweight held by Cuatrero) have been vacated. Soberano Jr., who still works for CMLL but hasn't wrestled for them since getting hurt in May, accused Ultimo Guerrero of killing the company. Dragon Lee said he'd see Soberano soon in ROH while Rush congratulated the Dinamitas on leaving and said CMLL did nothing for the wrestlers who caught COVID. It should be noted that Cuatrero is/was dating Sofia Alonso while Forastero married Ultimo Guerrero's daughter, so I can only imagine what things are like behind the scenes. As you can see above, longtime lucha observer RobViper has been saying for a while now that CMLL was in the middle of a UWA-esque death spiral. The company's economics are such that it's almost literally impossible for them to go out of business, but this isn't a good look for them at all.

Fiend/Orton getting booed out of the stadium at Mania should have put an end to arguments that there's a silent majority of Fiend superfans who need to be catered to. Having something that appeals to a rabid niche is fine, but not if it's an active turnoff to the audience as a whole.

Ideally, foreign objects in wrestling should be limited to items that would naturally be at ringside (like chairs and tables) or can be concealed on a wrestler's person (like powder or a roll of coins). I'm also willing to accept certain gimmick props like Cornette's tennis racket and Sgt. Slaughter's riding crop. The use of stabbing implements is a hard line that should never be crossed. Even in a no-DQ match, the goal should be to knock your opponent out, not exsanguinate them.

So Doudrop lost after being distracted by a winking doll. Cool.

It never fails to amuse me how just about everything he said in this promo, which at the time was just delusional heel ranting, ended up being prophetic.

It started with the September 14, 2009 issue after the show was taped when he wrote the following about Davey Richards vs. Shingo Takagi: "These two were put in position to steal the show and from all accounts did. Several compared it with Undertaker vs. Michaels at WrestleMania. It’s hard to compare, as this was more innovative, but WWE style isn’t about being innovative. Tons of near falls. Correspondent Keith Lipinski called it the best match he’s seen live in three or four years and others talked of it as a probable top three placer for match of the year. Lots of match of the year talk and everyone said it was at least a must-see candidate. Richards ended up winning via submission with a Kimura. Reports were ****3/4" Here's what he wrote after the November 9, 2009 issue after the show aired on PPV: "While most liked Richards vs. Shingo, a longer match with more flashy moves, I preferred Danielson vs. Doi, which from a pure wrestling standpoint was as good as any match I’ve seen in the U.S. this year. Obviously the two guys don’t have the presence of Undertaker and Shawn Michaels, nor the setting, but when it came to just a smooth flow of moves as opposed to just kicking out of trademark spots, this match was superior."

The opening was a total gut punch, both because of his voice cracking and him saying he'd almost as soon never do another podcast again than have to do this. I think the best tribute to Eaton would be if this inspires him to let some grudges go. He doesn't have to start liking AEW, but he can agree to disagree while focusing on the history of the business and other things he enjoys. Life's too short be spend it consumed by the stuff you hate.

Looks like I called it and brother KawadaSmile's going to get the return to FCW-style developmental he's been yearning for. Be careful what you wish for, bubba. I will say that if it means an end to all the CrossFit bullshit they do at the PC that wrecks people's knees and shoulders, that'll be a step in the right direction.

It reminds me of what Beavis and Butt-Head said about The Jesus Lizard: "They suck, but they kick ass." That's Sid in a nutshell.

My best guess is that they'll keep a handful of veteran hands around to serve as player/coaches in NXT the Reborn since green talent can only learn so much working with each other. Otherwise, they might as well release Ciampa since he has said his neck can't handle the wear and tear of being on the road full-time and he's nowhere near the level of star that they'd give him a reduced schedule. By the way, FCW was even worse than NXT. That was the era of developmental being stocked almost entirely with bodybuilders and bikini models with a handful of second- and third-generation wrestlers thrown in, the vast majority of whom amounted to absolutely nothing. There's a good chance that's what NXT will revert back to with Johnny Ace back in charge of personnel. The only successful developmental program WWE ever had was early 2000s OVW.

Sid got over huge everywhere he went initially because his look and charisma gave him a larger-than-life aura (he's perhaps the ultimate airport test wrestler). But he'd lose steam rapidly once it became clear that the steak didn't match the sizzle. He would've been a legend in the territory era because he could bounce around as a special attraction and not stay anywhere long enough to wear out his welcome. Also, people mark out for tall guys with good bodies in person far more than they do watching on TV.

If we're defining trios as any 3 vs. 3 tag match and not just ones done under lucha rules, the early 90s Jumbo/Misawa six-mans (10/19/90 and 4/20/91 being the best of the bunch) lap the field to the point where matches from other promotions barely even merit consideration. Personally, I think lucha trios work much better in a live setting because there's usually so much going on simultaneously, particularly in the third fall, that it's impossible for the cameras to pick up on it all and I hate missing out on any of the action.

It's not all that shocking when taken in isolation (other than Mercedes being cut while recuperating from being concussed by a PC trainee, as has been noted). But this is what, the fourth round of mass releases due to "budget cuts" in the past five months? Think of the cumulative effect it has on the ones who are still around knowing the ax could fall at any time. If guys like Braun and Bray can get cut for budgetary reasons in the middle of record profits, no one is safe.